Brian Michael Bendis Is Writing Tim Miller’s Kitty Pryde Movie

It sounds like that Kitty Pryde X-Men spinoff is really happening. A month ago we learned that Deadpool director Tim Miller was reportedly working on a movie starring the diminutive X-Man, and last night brought the news that not only was it indeed a Shadowcat movie, but X-Men comics legend Brian Michael Bendis is writing the script.

The sleuths at The Hollywood Reporter have deduced that mysterious X-Men project codenamed “143” is the much-rumored Kitty Pryde movie — 143 is a reference to the Christmastime-set Uncanny X-Men issue #143, which is one of the earliest Shadowcat stories and her first solo adventure, in which she battles a demon called a N’Garai as it tears through the X-mansion while the rest of the heroes aren’t at home. We don’t know for sure if the working title means that this movie will indeed be a version of that particular issue, or if it’s just a subtle reference to Kitty Pryde with the movie being about something completely different.

Bendis is pretty huge news, as he’s one of the most celebrated and influential Marvel comics writers ever. Since he joined Marvel in 2000, he’s worked on a ton of Avengers, Daredevil, and Spider-Man series and created iconic characters like Miles Morales and Jessica Jones. Last fall, he surprised everyone by announcing he was moving exclusively to DC Comics, though he does have a new run of Jessica Jones issues coming out later this year.